Permanent Residence Permit in Denmark After 7 Years, 1 Month and 1 Week

Ok, on our Twitter I excitedly wrote the other day that I got my permanent residence permit in Denmark after breathing, being, studying, living and working here for more than 7 years now. So, yes I am very excited!!! To tell you the truth, it is hard to believe that I’ve been in this country for almost a quarter of my life now. It seems like yesterday (well almost…) that I touched down on the Danish soil at the Copenhagen airport and took my train to Aarhus (to study).

Why am I saying all this besides the fact that I want to share this exciting news with you? Well, the reason being I want to reflect upon all this time I’ve been in Denmark and share how difficult it may be to get accustomed to a new culture, new people, new ways in schooling/education etc.

Sure, before coming here I was sort of psychologically prepared (at least this is what think) and one can argue it is the most important factor to smoothly settle down in any country. And mindset is good but resources and tools are necessary as well. With only this thought in mind, we’ve built our show because we want anyone who is planning to come to Denmark to experience it as smoothly as possible and make your stay as enjoyable as possible.

Now, I know we’ve shared this with you in Episode 15 some of the general rules and requirements for getting a permanent residence permit, but let me once again reiterate the process based on my own experience. I hope some of you might find it helpful.

Generally, you can get your permanent residence permit in 7 years of continuous residence in Denmark. (there are some other instances, but those you can read about at www.nyidanmark.dk, whereas here I will explain what I did to get my permit);

You should have no criminal record. I hope it is obvious;

Same or similar visa. Let me explain. As explained well in the aforementioned episode, you need to have the same or similar type of visa during your entire stay. E.g. if you have 4 years of student visa majoring in mechanical engineer and right after graduation you get a full-time job as an engineer at Danfoss and have worked for 3 years. Those years will be counted as 7 under your belt. However, if you studied on a marketing manager and then got a job as a journalist (because you have some previous work experience), the chances that they count that as 7 years all together are much slimmer.

Dansk Prøve 3 or Dansk Prøve 2. Danish language exam is another requirement. You need to pass that exam, ideally within the first 3 years of your stay. The reason being, the Danish education is free only for the first 3 years. If not, they you will have to pay around 500 DKK per half semester (as far as I remember).

If you are employed you need to submit along with your application a job contract and the letter of employment, where ideally it should say what you do, your duties/responsibilities as well as your strength. It would be perfect if your employer could emphasize the fact why it is you who got hired for the position.

I applied for my permit half a year before it was 7 years. E.g. if it’s in September that makes it 7 years, it is ok to apply as early as in early February.

After you’ve submitted your application, it would certainly take some time for them to get to your case. By the time they are processing the case they might ask you to submit a confirmation letter from your current employer or university. I submitted mine very quickly both via email and snail mail.

It is always good to call them once in awhile. If you know that it has been long since your applied for the permit, you might want to give them a call or better yet, ask your employer to support you.

Some people say rules are getting stricter in Denmark, which makes it more difficult for foreigners. With the show we want to reduce gaps between the rules, people, customs and those who are new to the Danish culture. I hope you find this info helpful and let me know what you’ve experienced in Denmark getting your temporary/permanent permit.

Vladimir

P.S. Don’t forget Episode 35 is coming out live tomorrow (well technically it is already today).

Comments

I tryed it in the early 6oies! It was much more complicated than nowadays! You would have a working permit – IF – you had an appartment! GOOD! BUT…to get a rentalcontract…guess what??? YES!!! You are right – YOU NEED a working permit….FINE THING!!!!

Dear Vladimir, first of all, congratulation for getting the PR in Denmark. Well, could you please clarify further if it is possible to apply for a PR directly without getting enrolled as a student or getting a job from the country from SOUTH ASIA say Nepal at the initial stage?

Dear Vladimir,
Thank you very much for sharing your helpful information. I have a PhD offer from Denmark and I am too much worried about getting PR in Denmark. Since PhD period is just 3 years, it seems to be so difficult to stay there for 3 years more. In addition, I was curious to know how difficult is the Danish anguage Test.I also don’t know if the education (like PhD) will be a plus or not?

i met a guy who has his own bussiness in denmark its a cafeteria,and he ask me if i want to apply for supervisor position….i said yes….now,what are the possible action i will do to get there?…i mean what are the requirements i need or he has to provide for me to work there?…i have my passport now…kindly please inform me…thank you

Hello. Congratulations with your permanent residence permit. Respect to all the challenges you have overcome to be where you are.

I am currently applying for my work permit after finishing my studies in Denmark. The processing is taking longer than expected and I wanted to ask what my employer could possibly do to speed up the process. At this moment the HR department calls in once in a while to check up on the situation. I have also sent a statement as to why my boss has hired me after a long hiring process. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

hullo,am an african,i got avisa to spain for only 1month.but my main reason was of going to denmark which i did.please i dont want to join arefugee camp.what can i do to get a temporary permit to live and work in denmark.my visa is six months expired.please help.

hi.this is kiran jit chand from ludhiana.i am married and haveing two kids.one of them is five years old and another one is eighth month old.i am graduate in arts and my wife is post graduate.i did my gradution in 2000 and my spouse did her graduation in 2001.we did it regularly.then my wife did her post graduation in hindi corrospondently.i want to migrate to denmark.my father is there.they got married in denmark and on job and having passport of denmark.so please let me know.how i will get this opportunity.

tillyke med dig:)
that was a great news! im oliver and im living in Denmark for 4 years now. And hopefully ill reach the 7th year law on permanent residence permit. i hope immigration will not change and affects my Recidence permit.

ps: for those of you , who wants to know information about immigration law or an specific topic about Denmark , visit this link http://www.nyidanmark.dk/da-dk. you can change the language to english.

i am from bangladesh. now i am work in italy. i have italian documents and recedient permit. but in this moment i want to go denmark for recedient and work permit. what can i do . pls help me, give me all information.

im frm nepal i would like to study in masters in business management….my ielts score is 5.0 i have passed bachelor degree with 49.14 percent let me know about average tution fee and total cost of per month where i am stay copenhegan or can i maintain my personal expeneses with tution fee can i get job for my total expenses plz suggest me also can i ful get ful time job after finished our study

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